The present invention relates to communication among control modules in a printing apparatus, such as a xerographic or ink-jet printer or copier.
Digital printing apparatus, such as xerographic copiers or xe2x80x9claser printers,xe2x80x9d or inkjet printers, are well known. Particularly in the high-speed range of the market, such printers are complicated electromechanical devices. Many such devices can be designed in modular fashion, with a customer buying or leasing only those portions of the apparatus that are desired. For example, a basic printer which simply outputs prints can be provided with a finisher module, which can staple sets of prints. The printer can be provided with a feeder module having extra paper trays for supplying paper of various sizes and types. The printer can further be associated with an input scanner, for obtaining digital data from hard copy originals, thus causing the printer to be able to operate as a copier. Even within the single xe2x80x9cboxxe2x80x9d of a digital printer, there may be numerous hardware boards, each board having a distinct function within the printer, such as data management, image processing, and xerographic control.
In order to design a robust system of office equipment including printers and scanners, complicated connections must be made among the various boards within a printer, and also among the control systems of ancillary devices, such as finishers, paper supply feeders, and scanners, which may be associated with one or more printers. As is well known in the art, typical means of communication of complicated signal sets includes wire harnesses or flexible connectors. In the basic assembly of office equipment, design and management of these harnesses or connectors is a labor intensive process, and the presence of large harnesses may present reliability problems over the life of the equipment. When printers are combined with ancillary equipment to form larger systems, establishment of communication among the various modules similarly becomes a labor-intensive, reliability-sensitive process.
The present invention is directed to the novel use of wireless connections among individual boards and other modules in office equipment.
In the prior art, it is known to use infrared signals, using well known protocols, to convey image data from a general purpose computer to a printer. Examples of this principle are shown in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,543,897; 5,510,876; 5,774,759; and 6,026,258. In each of these cases, however, the original image data which originates in a particular computer in is ultimately in a page description language (PDL) format, meaning that the image data is in the same format used for any standard communication between a computer and printer. The present invention, in contrast, relates to transfer of image and control data among individual modules, which together operate as a single digital printing apparatus.
According to one aspect of the present invention, there is provided a printing apparatus for outputting prints based on digital image data, comprising a main control board and an image processing board, for processing digital image data from an image data source, and outputting processed digital image data which is substantially directly operative of printing hardware. A print engine includes printing hardware for placing marks on a print sheet based on the processed digital image data, and a print engine board for accepting digital image data and operating the hardware. Means are provided for facilitating wireless data transfer between at least two of the main control board, image processing board, and print engine board.
According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a printing apparatus for placing images on sheets, comprising a main portion, including a first board, and an ancillary module including an ancillary board. The ancillary module is at least one of a paper supply module including a supply control board and a finisher module including a finisher supply board. Means are provided for wireless data transfer between the first board and the ancillary board to facilitate placing an image on a sheet.
According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided an ancillary module for use with a printing apparatus, the ancillary module being at least one of a paper supply module including a supply control board and a finisher module including a finisher supply board, comprising means for accepting wireless data transfer from a first board associated with a printing apparatus.
According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method of outputting prints based on digital image data, comprising the step of transferring, in a wireless manner, processed digital image data which is substantially directly operative of printing hardware from a first board to a print engine control board.